Published Thursday, October 1, 2026. This list is built from the 40 events on the Des Moines Insider calendar for Friday, October 2 through Sunday, October 4. Times, prices and venues are copied from each event's listing; when a listing has no confirmed start time we leave it off. Plans change, so check the event page or the venue before you go.
For the live list, updated every day, see events this weekend in Des Moines.
Top picks
- Clint Black - Friday, October 2, 7:30 pm - Vibrant Music Hall (Music)
- Reefer Madness - Des Moines - Friday, October 2, 7:30 pm - Stoner Theater at Des Moines Performing Arts (Arts)
- West Virginia Mountaineers at Iowa State Cyclones Football - Saturday, October 3 - MidAmerican Energy Field at Jack Trice Stadium (Sports)
- Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Present Bigger Hair/Bigger Thrills - October 1 - October 4 - Iowa Events Center (Entertainment)
- Alysha Brilla: Live at the Temple - Friday, October 2 - Temple Theater (Music)
- Come From Away - Friday, October 2 - Des Moines Community Playhouse (Arts)
- Farmstasia 2026 - Friday, October 2 - Living History Farms - Flynn Barn (Festival)
- Lauren Alaina with Shane Profitt - Friday, October 2, 7:30 pm - Hoyt Sherman Place (Music)
Free events
No listing on our calendar for October 2-4, 2026 gives its price as free. Most list "See website", so a free event can still be hiding in the list below. Our free events page has the ones we know about.
Running this weekend
- Pumpkin Fest - October 1 - November 6 - Center Grove Orchard
- Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Present Bigger Hair/Bigger Thrills - October 1 - October 4 - Iowa Events Center (top pick)
Friday, October 2
- Kevin Bozeman - 7 pm - Funny Bone Comedy Club
- The Slaughterhouse Haunted House - 7 pm - The Slaughterhouse
- Omaha Lancers at Des Moines Buccaneers - 7:05 pm - The MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex
- Clint Black - 7:30 pm - Vibrant Music Hall (top pick)
- Lauren Alaina with Shane Profitt - 7:30 pm - Hoyt Sherman Place (top pick)
- Reefer Madness - Des Moines - 7:30 pm - Stoner Theater at Des Moines Performing Arts (top pick)
- 2026 Iowa Latino Gala - The Loft DSM
- Alysha Brilla: Live at the Temple - Temple Theater (top pick)
- Building The Wall by Robert Schenkkan - Tallgrass Theatre Company
- Candlelight: Tribute to Michael Jackson - Scottish Rite Consistory
- Come From Away - Des Moines Community Playhouse (top pick)
- Farmstasia 2026 - Living History Farms - Flynn Barn (top pick)
- First Friday at Mainframe Studios Featuring STEAM - Mainframe Studios
- Live Music by Quinn Trilk - Iowa Distilling Company
- Live Music: Corbett Reeves @ The Merc - Middlebrook Mercantile
- Panda Fest 2026 - Outlets of Des Moines
- The Haunted Trolley Tour - Starts @ Whiskey River
- VIP Whiskey Tasting Event feat. Iowa Distilleries - Meridian Events & Catering, The
- WDM Library 30th Birthday Bash! - West Des Moines Public Library
- Yappy Hour at Surety Hotel - Surety Hotel, Autograph Collection
Saturday, October 3
- Belmont Bruins at Drake Bulldogs Mens Soccer - 6 pm - Mediacom Stadium
- Tri-City Storm at Des Moines Buccaneers - 6:05 pm - The MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex
- Tucker Wetmore with George Birge and Jacob Hackworth - 6:30 pm - Vibrant Music Hall
- Taking Back Sunday with Thrice and Saves The Day - 7 pm - Val Air Ballroom
- Genessa & The Selena Experience - 7:30 pm - The Ingersoll
- Cheekface - 8 pm - xBk Live
- Come From Away - Des Moines Community Playhouse
- Dayton Flyers at Drake Bulldogs Football - Drake Stadium
- Downtown Fall Des Moines' Farmers Market - Historic Court Avenue District
- West Virginia Mountaineers at Iowa State Cyclones Football - MidAmerican Energy Field at Jack Trice Stadium (top pick)
Sunday, October 4
- UIC Flames at Drake Bulldogs Womens Soccer - 1 pm - Mediacom Stadium
- 2026 Central States Insurance Auditor Association Convention - 4 pm - Hilton Garden Inn West Des Moines
- Des Moines Biergarten - 5 pm - Water Works Park
- The Temptations - 7:30 pm - Stephens Auditorium
- Come From Away - Des Moines Community Playhouse
Plus 2 weekly regulars (trivia nights, open mics, happy hours and the like), listed on the this weekend page.
How we picked
Top picks follow a fixed order: events an editor has marked featured, then shows at the metro's big ticketed venues (arenas, theaters, concert halls, stadiums, Living History Farms, the zoo), then festivals and family events, then everything else. Ties go to the more popular listing, then the earlier start. We take at most one pick per venue and three per category. Weekly regulars and online-only events are left out. When the same event is listed twice, it appears once.